Key questions (see key questions 1–3 of the Preamble)

Contributions from sociology to environmental literacy

Q1 How is the society–environment nexus conceptualized by different sociological theories? When and how was the material–biophysical environment incorporated into sociological theories?

Q2 According to sociological theories, what are the key drivers of societies and which ones are relevant for the interaction between human and environment systems? How do social structures affect individual actions, particularly environmental behavior, and vice versa? How are environmental processes picked up by public discourses and reconstructed as “environmental problems?”

Q3 How can sociological findings about societal decision-making and learning processes help humans cope with environmental problems? What roles should different societal actors (e.g. academia, industry, the public) play in coping with “environmental problems?” At what spatial level (e.g. regional, national, supranational) are environmental problems best addressed?